Key of Trust
by StarGazr1
Summary: During the night, Mulder goes over to his new partner's apartment to talk about a missing X-File.


Title: Key of Trust Author: StarGazr Rating: G Category: post-ep Spoilers: pilot Keywords: Mulder/Scully friendship Summary: During the night, Mulder goes over to his new partner's apartment to talk about a missing X-File.  
  
Disclaimer: All characters belong to FOX, 1013 Productions, Chris Carter, David Duchovny, and Gillian Anderson. I am simply borrowing them to continue a story. The dialogue in the first few lines are transcripts from Tiny Dancer's amazing site.  
  
Author's Note: This is once again another one of my older pieces... resurrected for all to see again! I hope you enjoy this glimpse into the past... for the future is now uncertain. Thanks to Susan who edited this so many years ago... my friend, you always know where the commas go! Em, thanks for the decade memories... I hope we have more to come. Everyone else... this is my insanity at its best!  
  
Dana Scully's Apartment 11:21 pm  
  
Scully laid in her bed, eyes wide open, unable to sleep. The phone rang and she picked up. "Hello?"  
  
"Scully? It's me; I haven't been able to sleep. I talked to the D.A.'s office in Raymon County, Oregon. There's no case file on Billy Miles. The paperwork we filed is gone," Mulder sighed softly, "we need to talk, Scully."  
  
Scully looked over at the clock. It was past 11:00. "Yes, tomorrow." She hung up slowly, and laid back down. Working with Agent Mulder was going to be an interesting task for her. She rolled over on to her side, closed her eyes, and fell into a light sleep.  
  
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X  
  
Fox Mulder's Apartment 12:01 am  
  
Mulder sat on his couch and stared at the TV. There was nothing interesting on, and he definitely wasn't tired. He and Scully had to talk. Working with her was going to be interesting to say the least. The thing that bugged him the most was the fact that she didn't believe the things coming out his mouth, yet he felt that he could trust her somehow.  
  
Deciding that he had done thinking, he leapt off the couch, and grabbed his keys. Locking the door to his apartment, he ran to the elevator then out to his Bureau issue car.  
  
It took him thirty minutes to get there. He sat for another ten minutes in front of Scully's apartment building debating about what to do. He would feel so guilty if there was someone there with her. He didn't know if she had a boyfriend or anything like that.  
  
Somehow he ended up on the elevator, headed for her apartment. What did he have to worry about? She was his partner for crying out loud! He got to her apartment and knocked softly. 'God, don't let me wake her up,' he thought to himself.  
  
A moment later Mulder heard the chain rattle from inside. The door opened to reveal a blue silk pajama clad Scully, with a look of concern on her face. "Mulder? What's wrong?"  
  
"Well, I think we need to talk. It couldn't wait till morning, though," he glanced at his watch, "it is morning." He gave her a half smile. "Please tell me that I didn't wake you... again."  
  
"No, no. I hadn't fallen asleep. Well since you're here, come on in." She stepped away to let him in. Mulder walked through the threshold and took a look around. He smiled, liking what he saw. It was so much neater than his apartment.  
  
Scully walked over to the couch and sat down. Mulder took off his jacket, hung it over a chair and sat next to Scully, who was sitting Indian Style, facing him. He sat wit his arm on the back of the couch, looking at his red headed partner.  
  
"I'm sorry for coming over so late," Mulder apologized. Scully shook her head, dismissing the idea. "I don't sleep much," he continued, "I come alive at night. If we were working on a case, I'd be all over it right now."  
  
Scully smiled. "I'm being rude; would you like something to drink?" She got up and went into the kitchen. "Coffee? Tea? Soda? Water? You know, I might even have a beer somewhere in here." She looked back into the living room.  
  
"I brought the car, no beer thanks. Water's fine." He looked around the apartment with great interest. He saw photos on the bookshelf. He stood and walked over, glancing over the photos.  
  
Scully walked in and handed a glass with water. "Ah, my family," she smiled and began pointing. "This is my mom and dad, they live in Baltimore. This one here," she pointed to a picture with two men in Navy uniforms, "is of my brothers Charlie, the baby, and Bill Jr. the oldest. Charlie's somewhere in the Atlantic. Bill is somewhere in the Pacific."  
  
"One ocean not big enough for the two of them, huh?" They both laughed. "Who's this with you?"  
  
"That's Melissa... Missy. She's my older sister. Last time we checked she was in New York. Who knows, she's a bit eccentric. And that is the Scully clan."  
  
"Who's this guy?" Mulder pulled down a picture of a man, older but handsome none the less. He was standing outside, right hand on a tree, left hand on his hip, smiling.  
  
Scully did not smile. "Oh, that's Daniel. No one that matters. Someone that I'm trying to forget."  
  
"I'm sorry, Scully," Mulder said gently.  
  
She sighed and looked at the picture now in her hand. "I knew him during my residency. He was... someone special. But now that I'm thinking about it--" she carried the photo over to her desk, gave it one last look, then slid it into the back of a drawer. She walked over and sat on the couch. 'Time to embrace the future,' she thought to herself.  
  
"I have a few of those," Mulder sat down next to her and became serious. "When we go into the office tomorrow, there will be no files on Billy Miles. It will be as if we never even went to Oregon. Except there's going to be hotel bills."  
  
"Does this happen often, Mulder?" Scully asked him.  
  
"Well, it's happened a few times over the last few years, but for some reason, I think that it's going to happen more now." He looked at her with compassion, but she looked upset.  
  
"It's because of me, isn't it? Look, I was just sent down to make sense of your work. I thought that I was sent to debunk you in the beginning but after seeing what I saw, I don't believe that proving you wrong is my goal."  
  
Mulder smiled at this. "Let me tell you something, Scully," she glanced over at him. "It's going to take a lot to prove me wrong. But, it's not you. It's me and my work. I'm so paranoid that someone up top is going to pull me back down."  
  
"Mulder, you're one of the Bureau's best criminal profilers. Why would they stop you?"  
  
"The truth?" She nodded. "I think they want to close the X-Files. I've been on to something for a few years now, something hidden in these files about the government. Every time I think I'm close, I lose a file, or a source."  
  
"Mulder, are you suggesting a conspiracy in our government?" It was a small shock to her.  
  
"Yes, that's the basic idea. I don't have a lot to show you without the files, but I can fill you in on everything when we go back to the office."  
  
"OK, I'd like to go over your files and notes," she yawned.  
  
They sat in silence for a moment. Mulder reached into his coat pocket and handled something small and metal. He thought of his X-Files for a moment and held tight onto the metal. Then he looked at Scully and loosened his grip, nodding his head. He pulled it out of his pocket and held it in front of her. "Here, this is a spare key to my apartment. I want you to keep it with you. Just in case, ya know?" He handed it over and got up to go to the door.  
  
Scully examined the small key and smiled. She got up and walked over next to him, opening the door. "So, when do we start our next case?" Scully asked, emphasizing on the word 'our'.  
  
"Oh, so now they're our cases, huh? I'm going into the office tomorrow to see if I have anything new. Care to join me?"  
  
"Sure, I'll meet you there around 8:00?"  
  
"Sounds good. You know something Scully?" He asked her, as he pulled on his jacket.  
  
"What's that?"  
  
"I think this is going to work out. I think this is going to be something good." He gave her a small grin.  
  
"Me too. Good night, Mulder," she watched him walk down the hall.  
  
"Good night, Scully," he got onto the elevator and gave her a small wave as the doors closed. Scully closed the door to her apartment and looked down at the key in her hand.  
  
"This is definitely the start of something good," she said to herself with a confident smile, and went back to bed.  
  
The End... For Now... Please, click on the review button and drop me a note. Thanks 


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